Over 235 military aircraft landings so far this year

Since the beginning of the year there were 224 military aircraft that landed at Malta International Airport, including 14 in emergency situations.

Answering a parliamentary question by Labour MP Owen Bonnici, Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi said the emergency situations had involved French, Danish and American planes – two with technical problems, one with fuel supply problems and the rest because of fuel shortages.

The 224 aircraft had not been taking part in the conflict in Libya. They had brought foreign delegations for talks with the government or delegations from the United Nations, the African Union, the EU or other governments that had stopped over for refuelling before continuing on to Tripoli or Benghazi for talks with Libyan officials.

Some of the aircraft had stopped here with spare parts for the aircraft that had landed in emergency, while others had transferred supplies or personnel for military vessels operating outside Maltese territorial waters.

Answering two other questions by the same parliamentarian, Dr Gonzi said the Armed Forces of Malta were not involved in any paramilitary assistance to forces fighting Muammar Gaddafi.

Between January 1 and June 20 this year, 3,612 Libyans arrived in Malta from non-Schengen countries. This compared with 6,943 in the same period last year.